Laid out by Fred Hawtree and J.H Taylor in 1932, the tree-lined fairways of the Moor Hall Golf Club course are set within a 300-acre estate that was formerly the residence of the Bishop of Exeter in the 16th century.
Moor Hall Golf Club
Laid out by Fred Hawtree and J.H Taylor in 1932, the tree-lined fairways of the Moor Hall Golf Club course are set within a 300-acre estate that was formerly the residence of the Bishop of Exeter in the 16th century.
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Moor Hall GC is approaching it's 100th birthday in 2032. But this club is not resting on it's laurels or looking back to the past, it is pressing on towards the next 100 years with course improvements and developments that will future proof the course for the next generation of golfers.
The current Director of Greens has taken Tom Mackenzie"s Masterplan and is really pushing forward with the proposed changes. The bunkers were redesigned and rebuilt a few years ago under Mackenzie"s guidance, including moving many into more relevant positions for today's golf i.e. more into the fairways and also at distances that will penalise the longer hitters - but also recent noticeable and welcome changes have seen the greens extended back to their original footprints, making many a 1/3 bigger, plus shaved run offs added throughout the green complexes. Add to this the tricky green putting surfaces and the course now presents excellent green complexes throughout. The shaved run off areas really do come into play on the now enlarged greens, with alot of the greens having slopes towards these areas. Should one not be accurate in approach play, a tricky chip/putt back to the putting surface awakes.
Some of the previous reviews miss the challenge this course offers. There is definitely strategy required off the tee. The improved bunkering means that off the tee, players have a choice to take on the fairway bunkers, or try and thread your drive down the fairway and miss them. In addition position off the tee is also important on alot of holes. Get in the wrong position off the tee and your 2nd shot to the green could well be blocked out. Good examples of this are the 14th and 15th where play down the left hand side on both holes open up the approach significantly. The 4th is also another example where, on this very tight and narrow hole, a left hand side of fairway tee shot is needed to have any chance of going for the green in two.
The course routing on the whole flows well. Previous reviewers have commented on the 'Hall' holes feeling disconnected and there is some truth in that. Playing 2 short par 4s and a par 3, one could mistakenly think they have been added later however I understand that this isn't the case. The 'later' holes actually happen at holes 15 and 16. After a shorter par 4 14th, there used to be a par 3. That is now gone with the 14th now playing longer. As mentioned previously strategy off the tee is required, in terms of questions asked as to take on the brook or not, plus a need to stay left to avoid blocking out your approach shot. The 15th is now a long par 4 and felt in keeping with previous holes. I did feel that the 16th felt a little less in keeping and a more average hole design wise, long and straight, however the green complex is good and then the course picks up again with a superb downhill par 3 17th. 170 yards, brook short, well protected by three bunkers.
The 18th is a solid enough par 4 finish. The tee shot is good. A narrow opening playing across a valley. The approach to the green looks somewhat less interesting and for a finishing hole I was a little underwhelmed. That said, when reaching the green site, there remains enough interest with bunkering, mounds and run off areas. There is discussion whether to make this into a par 5. Taking the tee back into the woods and creating a 500+ yard finisher. Personally I think that would be a much better finishing hole.
There remains plans to remove more trees, opening up areas for grass growth as a result, plus the addition of 'Tiger tees' on some holes.
The par 3's all shine. The 17th takes the limelight, but the 2nd offers a demanding uphill 175 yard one shotter, with a cavernous bunker left, a bunker right and a sloping back to front green, which also has contours across it, especially now that the green has been enlarged. The 11th is a 168 yard par 3 with Moor Hall providing the backdrop. Even the shortest hole, 150 yard hole, has plenty of challenge with a plateau green, running offs and bunkers making club selection vital to carry all the difficulty.
The consistency of the overall design I believe would be improved by a par 5 finish, as it would bring more balance to both 9s and also provide the chance to finish the round on a high. The finish is extremely challenging, from hole 14, with the 4 par 4s in the last 5 holes, all measuring over 440 yards. This is quite a contrast with the raft of shorter holes earlier in the routing. But within the earlier holes there is a great example of a short par 5 (479 yards) followed by a tough par 4 (473 yards). The 3 'narrow' holes at 4, 9 and 10 would benefit from some tree removal but overall I felt the undulating land is used well, making for a very enjoyable round.
From a ranking point of view, in my opinion, Moor Hall is too low in the Warwickshire rankings and hopefully this will be corrected at the next iteration.
Andy Cocker
The latest ranking of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the World serves as the ultimate global golf bucket list. Most members of our World Top 100 Panel are seasoned golfers, each playing 20-30 of these courses annually while travelling extensively over decades to form their opinions on others. We recognise that opinions vary—even among our panel members. Rankings are subjective, and there are undoubtedly 50 or more courses in the UK and USA alone that could easily fit onto this list. Links Golf Pilgrimages The rankings
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Overall rating
4.5
Overall rating
4.5
